— Tell us a bit about your dive resort. How would you describe Misool Eco Resort in a nutshell?

Marit and Andrew: “Our resort is an intimate, tropical holiday hideaway, built on a private island in an archipelago of uninhabited islands. We are 165 km away from the nearest port, blissfully secluded and largely untethered from the modern world. No light pollution, no noise pollution, no mobile phone signal... in fact there is very little to distract you from the surrounding natural beauty.

Our resort island is leased from the local community, along with 1220 sq km of surrounding reefs. This No-Take Zone, which is nearly twice the size of Singapore, is patrolled by our Rangers. All our dive sites are inside this area, which means the reefs are just astounding... gorgeous corals, massive sea fans, patrolling reef sharks, pygmy seahorses, schooling tuna, giant manta rays, walking sharks...”

— Misool Eco Resort Water Cottage

— When did you open the resort and what was your inspiration?

Marit and Andrew: “Our inspiration was the spectacular natural beauty of Raja Ampat. It’s hard not to be moved by the scenery, both above and below the water. This is the heart of marine biodiversity, and there just are no richer reefs on earth. The underwater world here is still pristine, and visiting is like stepping through a portal into an different time, before the global pressures of overfishing, shark finning, and human overpopulation were rife.

We opened in 2008 on the site of a former shark-finning camp. Our respect for the natural surroundings and our commitment to the local community defined the way we built the resort. We didn’t buy any lumber and instead set up our own sawmill. When we opened, we had milled over 600m3 of reclaimed tropical hardwood. We used local labour as much as possible, and created apprenticeship programs to train our staff. We are so proud that many of our waiters, dive guides, and housekeepers started with us years ago as unskilled labourers. We’ve grown together.”

— Misool Eco Resort North Lagoon

— Misool Eco Resort is all about environmental and social responsibility. How would you describe your philosophy?

Marit and Andrew: “We want to raise the bar for tourism while rewriting conservation strategies. We no longer have the luxury of time, and we cannot wait for governments and NGOs to implement solutions to our environmental crises. All of us, including private enterprise, have a responsibility to our children and grandchildren to leave things better than we found them.

We must find sustainable solutions which decouple local economies from extractive practices which target diminishing resources. When it’s done consciously and intelligently, tourism can be that mechanism. Responsible tourism can empower local communities to reclaim stewardship over their ancestral lands and safeguard them from overfishing, mining, logging, etc.”

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— Please tell us about the different cottages and facilities you have at the dive resort.

Marit and Andrew: “All of our facilities are built of reclaimed tropical hardwoods - we didn't cut down a single tree to build the resort. Our main resort area is inside a placid horseshoe-shaped lagoon. We have eight Water Cottages built on stilts over the water, each with a hammock integrated into the veranda and steps leading down into the sea. We also offer several DeLuxe Villas for those who prefer a more exclusive experience.

Our Dive Centre is fitted with a massive camera and equipment area, adjoining a comfortable lounge. The restaurant is tucked under the palm trees on the lagoon’s beach, offering a tasty combination of Asian and Western fare.

We have four dedicated dive boats at Misool Eco Resort as well as a snorkelling boat and kayaks.”

— Diving from your Water Cottage

— What does a typical day look like at Misool?

Marit and Andrew: “Most of our holiday guests keep to a pretty busy schedule of diving, punctuated by dining. We offer up four tasty meals a day plus tea time each afternoon in our beach-front restaurant. In between, our guides are leading 3 to 4 dives each day. We have 2 marine biologists on staff, and they give presentations each evening on what you can expect to see underwater as well as related conservation issues. We also organise non-diving adventures, like snorkelling trips, visits to ancient petroglyphs, tours of mangroves, kayaking expeditions, and picnics on deserted beaches.

If all this sounds like too much activity for you, I can personally recommend spending an afternoon lounging in one of the hammocks built into the Water Cottage verandas. There’s no better vantage point from which to watch the water colour change from incandescent turquoise to shimmering deep blue as the light changes. And then of course there is the spa...”

— Lounge Area

— To you personally, what is so special about this holiday resort?

Marit and Andrew: “Misool Eco Resort is a love story. It’s the story of being so completely captivated by a place and a time and a project that no hurdle is insurmountable. And of course, the evolution of the resort runs parallel to the evolution of Marit and Andrew. We fell in love in Raja Ampat, and got engaged on the beach where the restaurant now stands...”

— Tell us a bit about Raja Ampat. What made you fall in love with this remote part of Indonesia?

Marit and Andrew: “Raja Ampat is like no place else on earth. It’s a network of thousands of islands, with a very low population density. The ecosystems here are comparatively intact, with unbroken swathes of monsoon jungle meeting the sea, and then pristine reefs below. It’s breathtaking.

The industrialised communities are already so far removed from nature that it’s easy to believe that we’re not actually connected at all, that we humans exist independently from the rest of nature. But that’s simply not true. The great gift of living here has been that I am reminded of this fact each day.

The local communities of this area are directly linked to the health of their natural resources. This interdependence resulted in generations’ worth of accumulated local knowledge. Our staff and our local hosts have been so generous with us and our guests, sharing their knowledge, remedies, and myths. Once you start learning all this and feeling the connection, it’s hard not to fall in love with this place.”

— Dive Centre in a storm

— The activities around the resort are mostly geared around diving. What makes this place so perfect for diving?

Marit and Andrew: “The reefs surrounding our resort island are the richest on earth, and they’re utterly pristine. Our House Reef is accessible from the steps of your Water Cottage. We have a great variety of local reefs, all within 20 minutes of the resort. And best of all, you rarely need to share a dive site with anyone else!”

— Spa Pagoda

— What other activities or things to see are there around the resort?

Marit and Andrew: “We can organise a variety of excursions and expeditions, depending upon guests’ interests. We highly recommend a visit to the village, escorted by one of our local staff. This gives holiday guests a great insight into the local culture. Another favorite is a tour of 5,000 year old petroglyphs, which are hidden inside a labyrinthine network of lagoons and karst outcroppings. It’s an eery and beautiful place, and it’s not hard to imagine why it’s been a place imbued with spiritual importance for so many generations.

Deserted beach excursions are another favourite – we can drop you and your sweety off on private beach with some loungers and a bottle of bubbly. One of my favourite tours is to a nearby mangrove area, which is a fruit bat roosting site. The surrounding rocks also happens to be full of wild orchids.”

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— When is the best time for a dive holiday in Raja Ampat?

Marit and Andrew: “My favourite time of year is at the start of our season, in September. This time of year is characterised by huge glittering schools of anchovies, moving in swathes of synchronised silver. In hot pursuit are mobula rays hunting in formation, dog tooth tuna, giant travelly, Spanish mackerel and other pelagics. All that fish and plankton in the water means the visibility is not fantastic, but who cares? There is so much action.

As the season progresses, all those anchovies are decimated by predators and the visibility clears up. By mid-November, we typically have absolutely flat seas and 25+ meters visibility. I’d recommend this time as well as February/March for those who are looking for clear water and expansive reef scenes. No matter what time of year you come, the lush soft corals and expansive hard coral gardens are beautiful and crowded with bizarre lifeforms like ghost pipefish, pygmy seahorses, and porcelain crabs. We close from mid-June to mid-September for the windy season.”

— Nearby lagoons

— To you personally, what has been the biggest reward about running a dive resort?

Marit and Andrew: “It’s like a huge puzzle. The project started as a tiny seed hoping to grow into a conservation centre, but the course changed very quickly. We couldn’t come up with a viable funding model for a conservation centre. And the more research we did, the more convinced we became that private enterprise with healthy reefs as its primary asset could be a very effective conservation tool.

So we ended up building a holiday resort, and the puzzle became even more complex. It’s been such a rewarding journey, especially to see how people are transformed by the place. Our holiday guests leave with a much deeper appreciation of nature’s magnificence and the threats against it. And hopefully they feel that they can be involved with finding solutions. Through contact with our guests, our 120 staff are reminded that their backyard is someplace really really special. It’s worth protecting, for their own children and grandchildren as well as for the rest of the world.”

— The world's richest reefs

— How would you like your holiday guests to remember their stay?

Marit and Andrew: “We want our guests to leave refreshed, relaxed, reconnected, and above all inspired. There is so much beauty in the world, so much to appreciate. It is my greatest hope that our story and our mission can encourage other folks to take a look at the corner of the world they inhabit and spend a few moments figuring out how they can leave it better than they found it. We all have that capacity, perhaps even that duty.”

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— Thank you, Marit and Andrew!

Please check directly with the owner for special arrangements or information not listed here.

Our Water Cottages are built around a horseshoe-shaped lagoon, on stilts over the water. With steps leading down from your veranda and into the sea, the House Reef is just a few fin-kicks away. Each cottage is equipped with a hammock built right into the veranda. The ensuite bathroom features a Balinese-style shower open to the sky.

Rates are per person based on 2 sharing. Maximum occupancy 2 people. Rate includes meals and non-alcoholic beverages, airport pick-up and porter services, and hotel accommodation in Sorong for one night following your stay at Misool Eco Resort.

Please contact us for our schedule for trip dates – we operate 7, 9 and 12 night trips on a fixed schedule.

Misool Eco Resort is closed each year for July/August due to the southern monsoon season in our area.

These gorgeous 2-room Deluxe North Lagoon Villas are built on the outer edges of the North Lagoon.
Rates are per person based on 2 sharing. Maximum occupancy 3 people (Villa Tabisasu) or 4 people (Villas Nasnoos/Wakachom). Rate includes meals and non-alcoholic beverages, airport pick-up and porter services, and hotel accommodation in Sorong for one night following your stay at Misool Eco Resort.

Please contact us for our schedule for trip dates – we operate 7, 9 and 12 night trips on a fixed schedule.

Misool Eco Resort is closed each year for July/August due to the southern monsoon season in our area.

Deluxe Villa Utara is built on stilts over the water on the western edge of the lagoon. The villa consists of two ensuite bedrooms with a shared living area, loft, and outdoor living area overlooking the house reef. We especially recommend this Villa for families or groups of 4-6 friends.

Rates are per person based on 4 sharing. Maximum occupancy 6 people. Rate includes meals and non-alcoholic beverages, airport pick-up and porter services, and hotel accommodation in Sorong for one night following your stay at Misool Eco Resort.

Please contact us for our schedule for trip dates – we operate 7, 9 and 12 night trips on a fixed schedule.

Misool Eco Resort is closed each year for July/August due to the southern monsoon season in our area.

These villas are located a short walk from the North Lagoon, on the powdery white South Beach with beautiful views to the south.

Rates are per person based on 2 sharing. Maximum occupancy 2 people. Rate includes meals and non-alcoholic beverages, airport pick-up and porter services, and hotel accommodation in Sorong for one night following your stay at Misool Eco Resort.

Please contact us for our schedule for trip dates – we operate 7, 9 and 12 night trips on a fixed schedule.

Misool Eco Resort is closed each year for July/August due to the southern monsoon season in our area.

The high calibre of this year's applicants illustrates some of the very best in sustainable tourism. Hopefuls ranged from planning and management projects, to those featuring innovative engagement with local community, and business making a difference.
The Tourism for Tomorrow Award categories are Global Tourism Business, Conservation, Community Benefit and Destination Stewardship.
The Tourism for Tomorrow Awards 2012 is proud to announce that this year’s Destination Stewardship Finalists are as follows:
Destination Røros, Norway
Misool Eco Resort, Indonesia
Tanabe City Kumano Tourism Bureau, Japan
The on-site evaluations will begin soon with esteemed sustainability experts visiting each of the Finalists to make in-depth assessments and gain a well-rounded picture of the organisations and practices.
The winners will be announced on 17 April at this year’s WTTC Global Summit in Tokyo from 16-19 April 2012, following the evaluation of the winner selection committee.

The Global Vision Awards winners, selected by our panel of expert judges, offer journeys that enrich the destinations you travel through.
Marine Protection: Misool Eco Resort, Raja Ampat, Indonesia
In a small, pristine corner of the Indonesian archipelago, the 11-cottage Misool Eco Resort has assumed an enormous responsibility: protecting one of the world’s most biologically diverse regions. Founded in 2005 by a group of divers and conservationists, Misool first formed a 165-square-mile haven for marine life. In 2010, Misool extended the area to 470 square miles, successfully petitioning the government to create a shark and ray sanctuary in the Raja Ampat islands—the first of its kind in Indonesia.

Misool Eco Resort Dive and Conservation Centre has been shortlisted in The Virgin Holidays Responsible Tourism Awards 2009, organised by responsibletravel.com.
Launched in 2004, the Awards aim to celebrate those individuals, companies and organisations in the travel industry that are making a significant commitment to the culture and economies of local communities and are providing a positive contribution to biodiversity conservation.